Iowa evangelical supports Santorum over Perry because of prayer (VIDEO)

Knoxville, Iowa — Greetings from the Hawkeye State, where we’re camped out in advance of Tuesday’s Iowa Caucuses….and are in search of a New Year’s Eve Party that doesn’t involve eating fried butter. But we digress.

We’re at the Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum, where Sen. Rick Santorum just dropped by for a 25-minute whistle-stop appearance before a dozen real Iowans about twice as many dorks holding notebooks and recorders. (The boss said he saw me on CNN, which should help justify the expense account.)

Afterwards, we chatted with folks like Kim and Vickie Bennett. Kim is a 52-year-old Knoxville resident who does plumbing and electrical work — and a United Pentecostal church member whose evangelical faith is very important to him. And that faith is central to who he will caucus for Tuesday at Knoxville High School nearby. Same goes for Vickie.

He was torn between Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Santorum. He finally decided to support Santorum on Friday after hearing Perry say a prayer that he felt wasn’t “genuine enough.” Vickie agreed, saying she came to the same conclusion a few days earlier for largely similar reasons.

This is a glimpse into the role that faith plays in guiding how some Iowa evangelicals vote. And it’s huge for Perry and Santorum, who are battling over third place in the polls here.

We’ll let Kim describe that to you, with help from the award-winning Shaky Hand Productions video squad: